Trends in Marital Happiness by Gender and Race, 1973 to 2006

This article uses data from the 1973-2006 General Social Survey to assess the interactive impact of race and gender on marital happiness over time. Findings indicate independent and significant effects for both variables, with Whites and husbands reporting greater marital happiness than Blacks and w...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of family issues 2009-10, Vol.30 (10), p.1379-1404
Main Authors: Corra, Mamadi, Carter, Shannon K., Carter, J. Scott, Knox, David
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
African Americans
Comparative Analysis
Families & family life
Gender
Gender Differences
General Social Survey
Happiness
Marital Satisfaction
Marriage
Marriage Counseling
Multivariate Analysis
Psychological Patterns
Qualitative research
Race
Social research
Spouses
Surveys
Trend Analysis
Trends
Whites
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:This article uses data from the 1973-2006 General Social Survey to assess the interactive impact of race and gender on marital happiness over time. Findings indicate independent and significant effects for both variables, with Whites and husbands reporting greater marital happiness than Blacks and wives. Comparing four subgroups (White husbands, White wives, Black husbands, and Black wives), the authors find that White husbands report the highest levels of marital happiness whereas Black wives report the lowest. Assessment of trends from the 1970s to the 2000s reveals a convergence among the groups: Although White husbands consistently report the highest levels of marital happiness, there has been a steady decline in the gap between all four groups. Most notably, Black wives exhibit a significant increase in marital happiness relative to the other groups. Findings are discussed in the context of the changing structure and composition of families in contemporary U.S. society.
ISSN:0192-513X
1552-5481
DOI:10.1177/0192513X09336214